A number of disclosures have been made regarding the development of food products that are digestible and nutritious. Attention is therefore directed to the following exemplary disclosures, particularly directed at dog chews: U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,586,027 “Health Chew Toy”; 6,180,161 “Heat Modifiable Edible Dog Chew; 6,159,516 “Method of Molding Edible Starch; 6,126,978 “Edible Dog Chew”; 6,110,521 “Wheat and Casein Dog Chew with Modifiable Texture”; 6,093,441 “Heat Modifiable Peanut Dog Chew”; 6,093,427 “Vegetable Based Dog Chew”; 6,086,940 “High Starch Content Dog Chew”; 6,067,941 “Animal Chew”; 6,056,991 “Turkey and Rice Dog Chew With Modifiable Texture”; 5,941,197 “Carrot Based Dog Chew”; 5,827,565 “Process for Making an Edible Dog Chew”; 5,339,771 “Animal Chew Toy Containing Animal Meal; 5,240,720 “Dog Chew with Modifiable Texture”; 5,200,212 “Dog Chew with Modifiable Texture”. Attention is also directed to U.S. Pat. No. 6,165,474 entitled “Application for Patent for Nutriceutical Toy” and U.S. Pat. No. 5,419,283 entitled “Animal Chew Toy of Starch Material and Degradable Ethylene Copolymer”.
In the field of food for fish, particularly fish that may be kept in an aquarium, a body of art has been disclosed suggesting the use of flakes, granules and pellets as carriers for vitamins, proteins, etc. For example, U.S. application Ser. No. 10/803,803 reports on a method of preparing fish food flakes including the use of vitamins and certain other nutritional ingredients.
There is nonetheless a need to improve on the above, particularly with respect to the delivery of vitamins and minerals and nutrients. Particularly, the field has recognized the sensitivity of vitamins to heat, light, oxidizing agents, extremes in pH and other factors. Therefore to advance health care for animals, such as fish, there is a need to consider the loss of such vitamins while processing the food products and/or to identify newer type supplements that enhance the nutritional nature of the food itself.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a fish food product that is enriched with vitamins and minerals to ensure that the fish's comprehensive and proper nutritional needs are maintained. In addition, it is also an object of the present invention to incorporate vitamins and minerals in a form that preserves the efficacy of the vitamins. More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to incorporate a nutraceutical of fermented soya and/or enzymes and coenzymes to the fish food product.